Nothing hits hardened Detective Frank Riley like kids in danger, and he finds himself embroiled in an ever shifting case to stop these kids from dying. In the midst of trying to find the dealer slipping them the drugs, he lands a strange case of a woman sitting on the bench outside of the hospital. She has been shot, but remembers nothing about how she came to be there. Dead coyotes start turning up, shot with the same caliber of bullet as the woman.
Then two young girls, who have been savagely beaten and assaulted,
are found half buried in snow outside of the emergency room. What is the
connection between these cases? Riley and his partner, Sam Rayburn, are hard
pressed to put all the pieces together before there is another victim.
Available on Amazon.
Excerpt
Frank Riley walked out the doors of the Emergency Room, thinking of a hot shower and a warm bed. Earlier, he had been thinking of a burger and a cold beer, but now, he wanted sleep. He was bone tired; so tired he didn't even want to eat. He had seen some crazy, gruesome scenes in his time, but crime that hurt kids always pulled at him more than any other.
The night air was crisp and fresh and he stood, taking deep
breaths for a few minutes, gazing up at the bright stars in the clear sky. The
sheer beauty of the heavens above started to relax him, and closing his eyes,
he rolled his shoulders to ease the tension. He started to key into dispatch
and let them know they were clear and returning to the station, but something
made him turn to look away from the building.
Scanning the parking lot as his hand rested on the button of
the mic on his shoulder, his eyes fell on a form sitting on the bench at the
main entrance, facing away from him. It was cold outside, just nine degrees,
but the figure sat perfectly still.
“Ready Frank?’ asked Rayburn, coming out of the sliding
doors and moving to join him.
“Not yet,” answered Riley. Rayburn followed his eyes and
walked with him as Frank moved across the frozen ground to the bench outside
the public entrance to the emergency room. He could now see it was a woman
sitting in the cold, but she gave no indication she saw or heard them walking
towards her.
She did not move as they approached and the two officers
exchanged a glance, automatically spreading out. She stared straight ahead, and
Frank noted her right hand was inside her jacket. He glanced at Rayburn, and
the younger officer moved behind her as Frank moved closer and stood in front,
and slightly to the right, of the woman.
“Ma’am? Are you alright?” Frank asked, studying her rigid
face. The woman did not move and gave no sign that she had heard him. He
studied her, then repeated “Are you alright?” Her eyelids flickered slightly,
but there was no other movement. “Do you need help?” he continued. She nodded
her head so slightly, he almost doubted the motion.
Frank scrutinized her, guessing her age to be early
thirties, average build and height, with wisps of ash blonde hair escaping the
pony tail that held it back behind her head. Her face was too pale but had a
rosiness on her cheeks and nose that indicated recent exposure to the sun or
wind. She wore black pants and snow boots that reached nearly to her knees. Her
jacket said North Face on the front and was a greenish gray in color. The hand
that lay listlessly in her lap was protected by what appeared to be a glove of
good outdoor quality. Well dressed for the weather, but still…
“What are you doing out here?” he asked. Something was very
off, and he needed to find out what was going on.
“Waiting,” she whispered.
“What are you waiting for?” he asked carefully,
unconsciously bending his head in her direction.
“Maybe for you," she hissed. Frank inhaled sharply. She said it so softly
he could barely hear the words, but they sent a chill down his spine. Slowly,
she raised her eyes to meet his, but there was a vacant quality to them that he
found unnerving. Her eyes were dark brown in color, and while her eyes looked
into his, he was not at all convinced they actually saw him. Frank noted
Rayburn had moved his hand to the butt of his weapon as she spoke.
“Can you take your hand out of your jacket for me please?”
he said levelly.
“No.” It was barely a whisper. Frank stiffened at the answer
and looked at her more intently. Rayburn took a step closer to her back.
“Do you have something inside your jacket?” he asked,
putting more assertiveness in his tone.
“Yes.” She still did not move.
“Can you tell me what is inside your jacket?” The hair on
the back of his neck prickled and he realized he was holding his breath.
“My hand.” She had dropped her gaze again and was staring at
his knees.
“Do you have something in your hand?” Deliberately, he kept
his voice controlled and even.
“Yes,” she whispered.
This is a great excerpt, this sounds really good
ReplyDeleteThank you, Marisela! It is actually inspired by a real case.
DeleteGreat excerpt, Coyote Man sounds like a thrilling and exciting read for me to enjoy! Thanks for sharing it with me and have a terrific day!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Stormy! I hope you find it interesting! Have a great day!
Deletecool cover
ReplyDeleteThank you, bn100. The shell casings on the cover correspond with the weapons used in the book. JoAnn Conner
DeleteThis sounds like a good book.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Brenda, I hope you get a chance to read the book.
DeleteJoAnn Conner
Sounds good.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Tori! I appreciate you taking a look.
DeleteJoAnn Conner
Thank you, Anna! I am told the rest of the book is just as good. It gets good reviews. JoAnn Conner
ReplyDeleteI like to read about real cases-thanks
ReplyDelete